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Technical Note 13
Tips for Adding Drivers to the Driver Database" Palette

 
There are two ways to enter drivers into the driver database. The first way is provided as a convenience for those times when a driver is being entered into the "Driver Properties" window for use in a design. After entering the driver information, simply click on the "Add this Driver to Database" button at the bottom of the window.

However, we recommend the second method for entering drivers into the database. The second method is to use the special database editor window that is customized specifically for this purpose. This is accomplished by selecting "Database > Edit Driver Data" from the "Edit" menu (Ctrl+W) to open the "Edit Database Driver Data" window. It allows you to enter the date of the driver information (usually the date that the driver data was first published by the manufacturer) and it allows you to identify whether or not the driver is currently available.

Here are some tips regarding the driver database:

  • The same driver database (file name: "htaudio.mdb") is used for both BassBox Pro and X•over Pro. Normally, both programs and the database are stored in the same folder on the hard drive of your computer. However, it is possible to cause BassBox Pro and X•over Pro to use separate copies of the database. This can be accomplished by installing the programs separately into different folders. And it can be accomplished by copying the database to a second location and using the "HTAudio Database File" setting of the "General" tab of the "Preferences" window to redirect the desired program to the copy.
     
  • Before a driver can be added to the database, a minimum amount of information must be entered. This includes a model name, driver type, company name, Fs, Vas (except sealed back drivers like tweeters) and either Qts or Qms and Qes. The model name must be unique for the manufacturer because a manufacturer is not allowed to have more than one driver with the same model name. The company name must already exist in the database. If the company does not yet exist in the database, it must be entered before any drivers can be entered for it. To enter a company, click on the "Edit Company" button on the "Enter Description" tab of the "Edit Database Driver Data" window or select "Database > Edit Company Data" from the "Edit" menu.
     
  • The "Enter/Edit Parameters" tab of the "Edit Database Driver Data" window is always in "expert" mode so that it can dynamically test the parameters as you enter them and flag any values which may not be correct. The more information you enter, the better. Please try to resolve any problems with the parameters before adding the driver to the database. Often, a red indicator beside a parameter indicates that the units were not set correctly before the value was entered. It is also common for manufacturers to print erroneous units in their data sheets. For example, µm/N (micrometers per Newton) is often switched by accident with mm/N (millimeters per Newton) for the Cms parameter. This can cause Cms to be off by a factor of 1000!
     
  • The driver database contains woofers, midrange drivers and tweeters. All drivers are assigned to one of two groups: "open back drivers" and "sealed back drivers". Open back drivers are woofers and midrange drivers whose piston or diaphragm is exposed on the back side as well as the front side. BassBox Pro only allows open back drivers to be viewed and used since the focus of BassBox Pro is box design. Sealed back drivers are tweeters and smaller midrange drivers whose piston or diaphragm is not exposed on the back side. Both open back and sealed back drivers can be accessed and used with X•over Pro because its focus is on crossover network design. Note: Because many manufacturers do not provide enough information about their tweeters and smaller midrange drivers, there are not as many sealed back drivers in the database as there are open back drivers.

 

Technical Notes for
all of our products:

 
BassBox 6 Pro
BassBox 6 Lite
X•over 3 Pro
Typeface Collection
BassBox 5.1
X•over 1.0-2.x
 

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